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Dragon and the Hawk

I hate to say anything negative about Dragon and the Hawk, because the filmmakers obviously put a lot of time and effort into their project. They live and work in Colorado, and I would love to give them some local support.

Plus, as they demonstrate on-screen, they can really kick ass and they could probably find out where I live.

On the other hand Dragon and the Hawk really is an amateur production, and it shows. Square, stagey photography, bad dialogue, self-conscious acting, and cheap-looking sets keep you from getting caught up in the movie.

A Web of Intrigue

Movie credits

Director

Actor

Screenwriter

Movie facts

Running time

87 minutes

MPAA rating

R for violence and language

Year released

2001

Dragon Pak (Julian Jung Lee, one of the better actors because his broken English is in character) is worried about his sister, with whom he has lost contact. Dragon comes to Denver to find out what’s happened to her, and he gets trapped in a web of intrigue. (“‘A Web of Intrigue!’ — Marty Mapes, moviehabit.com” would look great on the box, wouldn’t it?)

Hawkins (Barbara Gehring), or “the Hawk” as her friends on the force call her, is a detective fascinated by the disappearance of her sister. Unfortunately, her boss (Gary Hansbrough) wants her to work on a different case. “Save the world on your own time,” he shouts at her, demonstrating the film’s clichéd dialogue.

A chance encounter brings Dragon and The Hawk together in a parking lot, just in time to kick some bad-guy butt. (“‘Kicks Bad-Guy Butt!’ — Marty Mapes, moviehabit.com”). Together, they drive through the streets of Denver tracking down clues to the disappearance of these women.

Worthy of James Bond

The bad guys, meanwhile, are abducting women left and right. They inject the women with a new zombie drug which, if it doesn’t kill them, only makes them stronger, turning them into killer fem-bots.

Trygve Lode deserves a mention as the villain Therion, not because he’s any better an actor than the rest of the cast, but because his off-timed, deadpan delivery and his gigantic Viking physique are worthy of a James Bond villain. (“‘Worthy of James Bond’ — Marty Mapes, moviehabit.com). According to the press notes, Lode is a physicist, humorist, and vocalist, making his iconic presence all the more intriguing.

Raw Stuntman Talent

As amateur as it is, Dragon and the Hawk isn’t all bad. The strong female characters were a breath of fresh air. Gehring in particular was as competent as the men in the fight scenes, which was a beautiful break from Hollywood tradition.

And speaking of the fight scenes, they were actually pretty good. There were one or two brief moments where it looked like the combatants were merely taking turns, but a bigger budget and a little more editing would take care of that. The raw stuntman talent lacked nothing (“‘Raw Stuntman Talent’ — Marty Mapes, moviehabit.com”).

Still, you should remember that Dragon and the Hawk is a low-budget B-movie. But if you have a taste for camp, or for supporting local talent, you just might enjoy Dragon and the Hawk.